Happy Lunar New Year!

Just wanted to wish everyone who celebrates a very happy Lunar New Year and prosperous Year of the Goat/Sheep/Ram!  Enjoy celebrating with friends and family! What will you be doing and what are your traditions?  I usually have a nice vegetarian meal on the first day (I’m not a fan of Chinese jai, so I’ll […]

Lentil and Chickpea Stew for Lunar New Year, Day 1

Traditionally, Chinese people don’t eat meat on the first day of the Lunar New Year, which is tomorrow (January 31).  So, if you’re looking for something that is vegetarian or vegan, but not traditional Chinese food, you might want to try this lentil and chickpea stew, inspired by a lentil curry recipe I found online.  […]

Chinese Relatives, Titles and All that Confusion

The Lunar (Chinese) New Year starts on Friday, and for many of us, especially those who are lucky enough to have many relatives living in or near our hometown, it means dinners and celebrating with family.  And if you have a big family, it means lots of uncles, aunts and cousins.  And this can get […]

Purdy’s ‘Mainstreams’ the Lunar New Year with Chocolate

There’s a Purdy’s Chocolatier near my house, less than a 10 minute walk away.  I’m not much of a snacker, so I haven’t made too many purchases from them.  However, last week, I saw something different.  They were advertising candies for Lunar (Chinese) New Year.  I think this is one of the first times I’ve […]

Some Delicious Lunar New Year Foods

The Lunar New Year is almost upon us.  In fact, the year of the snake starts this coming Sunday.  New Year foods can vary from region to region and from household to household.  There is jai, of course, eaten on the first day (and of which I discussed in further detail last year).  One thing […]

Dinner and a Spin of Luck on Top of the CN Tower

Almost every year since I was about six or seven, my family would take a trip up to the CN Tower‘s revolving restaurant for our big Lunar New Year Meal.  My family sees it as a “spin of luck and good fortune”  and the only years we did not go up were when the restaurant […]

Chinese New Year Dinner at the 360 Restaurant: What I Wore

My family went to the 360 Restaurant, a revolving restaurant at the CN Tower for our annual “spin of luck and good fortune” dinner.  This is a tradition that we have continued to do for over The dinner was absolutely amazing (we were very lucky to go on a clear night so we got an […]

Welcoming the Year of the Dragon: Eating Jai

Monday marks the start of the Lunar New Year, the Year of the Dragon.  Chinese New Year celebrations, like many other holidays in the culture, are centred around food.  The amount of food one consumes is almost like…Christmas in western cultures.  It all begins on New Year’s Eve.  While many people have huge dinners at […]

Clothing and the Lunar New Year

The Lunar New Year isn’t only about food, but clothing as well.  Many people buy complete new outfits – from head to toe – just for the occassion (historically, the new year was the only time people got new clothes).  However, this can be difficult, as the lunar new year always in late January to […]